GoodSoundClub - Romy the Cat's Audio Site

In the Forum: Horn-Loaded Speakers
In the Thread: My Multi-way Horns

Post Subject: Reasons behind the movesPosted by skushino on: 11/30/2009

Thanks for your comments, Romy.

Edgarhorns weren't an obvious choice. Many horns never worked for me. The Avantgardes left me cold. So did the single-driver crowd (I just don't get it....), Altec VOTs, PA systems, etc. But there were some systems that made a good impression - one of Josh's Electronluv systems, my old Klipsch's driven with tubes, large vintage Tannoys, John Tucker's horns, and your Macondo. Looking back, my expectations for the Edgarhorns were too high.

You are trying to build a new system with “attention is focused on the region below 200hz” but you forget that sound below 200Hz is 50% of your room.

I don't think it's the room. I moved my other speakers and that damn sub-woofer all over the place before finding the locations that work. This gave me experience to know the difference between wrong bass from the room and just wrong bass. The bass I have isn't bad-room bass. I know exactly how I want my bass, and I have heard it before in some other systems. My Edgarhorn bass misses the mark on too many critical things. The tone color is tepid and gray. The energy is sleepy. Music notes are shapeless rather than round. It is asleep in the upper bass part. The bass doesn't match the MF. It should be more stately and noble. Slower. Vibrant. Engaging. These aren't problems from bad-room bass. This is the horn and driver.

I spent time listening to just the upper bass horn. And the only word to describe the experience is 'disappointing'.

When I get my RTA I bet it shows the bass is 3 - 5dB lower compared to everything else - this is what I hear. If that was the only thing wrong I could just pad the rest down. But that only fixes the sound level and leaves all the other problems. The horn is too short to properly load the lower bass. There are better drivers than the 15" woofer for playing the lower mids. I like the idea of using a small 5" or 8" driver properly horn-loaded instead. Intellectually, the bass can be implemented better than it is now. And I have high hopes (there I go again) for the x-driver in a proper mid-bass horn. If it works, it would be phenomenal.

You said “I plan to get an RTA to help integrate the new horn.” Good but prevented you to get it 5 years back – I think it is how long you are being frustrated with new Edgarhorns upper-bass.

You're right. No excuse.

To replace two 80–500Hz and 500Hz -10k channel with 3 channels of 70 Hz -240Hz, 240Hz -1200Hz and 1200Hz -10K is a very good idea of cause. Do not be too bind to the specific crossover points you identified, there is many reasons why you might not be able to him them.

Nope not hung-up on specific crossover points. These are just my conceptual idea for integrating the different parts - how they might fit together. The real project begins with using the RTA and listening to each specific horn / driver combo and learning where they do well and how they play together.

I do not know Scott – something does not feel to me in this idea as sensible. Too much project management and too little expression of the sonic specific.

I'm rarely accused of being sensible. I'm planning to hang the damn mid-bass horns from my ceiling! Should have spent more effort describing why I'm doing this rather than how it will be implemented. If you have more comments on what doesn't feel right about my project, please share.

Again, thanks for your feedback.

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